Shinhan Financial Group announced Thursday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with China's Bank of Communications to enable its SOL Travel Card users to make payments using QR codes in China.

The Bank of Communications, one of China’s five state-owned commercial banks, ranked ninth in The Banker’s 2023 Top 1000 World Banks. Its Seoul branch serves as the only designated renminbi clearing bank in Korea, managing settlements in yuan on behalf of other institutions.

As part of the agreement, Shinhan Bank plans to launch its QR payment service by the end of the first half of next year. This will enable SOL Travel Card users traveling to China to make payments through QR codes via Shinhan’s mobile application.

Shinhan Bank and the Bank of Communications will jointly handle renminbi clearing, with Shinhan Card working on card transactions and QR code generation. The Bank of Communications will also collaborate with the Net Union Clearing Corp., a Chinese QR payment organization, for card settlements.

“We aim to enhance the convenience of our payment services through this partnership. We will continue to improve customer experience, upgrading our financial services,” said a Shinhan Bank official.